Morningstar MPPT solar controller , and showing amps from panels.

Mppt charge controller. Helps get the maximum power out of your solar panels. It wasn't cheap but I think it was worth the money in the long run. Also a shot of the amperage being produced from the 3 panels on the roof at 10 AM. I had a morningstar TS-45 pmw controller that I was using for the wind turbines but that seemed to hold back the charging so I switched it out for the MPPT. The turbines aren't putting enough out to worry about needing a dump load right now so I am now running them directly into the batterys.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Solar MPPT controller
• Charge controllers.

[wiboater4]

I don't think the wire size is a problem. I'm not running very far. I've been off work for quite awhile now otherwise i'd have a way of testing the watts. Might still invest in a meter for that. I'm still waiting for a good sun day to test the panels seperatly . Might try hooking the 2 large ones up in series for 24 volts.

[helloman1976]

@wiboater4 I would for sure run in 24VDC if possible. I'm not a fan of 12V unless you are running very short wires and even then just use 24V. I use 8ga building wire I got cheap from HomeDepot and at 30 feet I read .9 ohms and at 50 feet I read 1 ohm. I'm running 2 x 24VDC 175W panels in parallel and making very good numbers, about 1.6-1.8kwh per day and that's with them laying on top of my hot tub not even mounted yet. I'll be posting videos soon! Thanks for your post!

[wiboater4]

@helloman1976 I just switched the 2 72 cell solar panels over from 12 volts to 24 volts. really made a difference. from one panel I was getting about 11 amps and that wasn't in real good sunlight. I still had to order another Mppt charge controller. The morningstar was supposed to be good for 44 watts at 24 volts but when i hooked up the 2nd 24 volt panel it only added a couple more amps.

[wiboater4]

@wiboater4 That's supposed to be 400 watts not 44. I ordered a Bz 500 watt mppt controller. both panels put out over 10Amps seperately hooked up but when both are connected to the morningstar it only reads 12 amps. at( 35 volts panel side of controller) hooked up to the 12 volt battery bank thru the controller

[Schweizer135]

OR ... since your turbines keep your batteries full then why not skip the solar charge controller and simply grid tie your solar watts to slow down your meter. This way every watt produced will provide a benefit to you. See vid pbj23-fu0E4 . Just be aware that grid tie inverters don't run at their "sticker" rating. One SF GTI 500 ($170) has proven to do 360w safely and one may be all you'll need. It should shave up to $10 off your elec bill each month, and more with tracking. Cheers ...

[wiboater4]

@Schweizer135 The SF GTI your referring to , is that the sun 500G? and if it is where did you see it for $170. I saw a 250 watt for that price on ebay but the 500 watt is around $220. with the shipping. Micheal1970 is running 3 of the 500 watters now.

[helloman1976]

@wiboater4 Awesome! I'm glad I could help someone out. My system is going well also. I just ran 60 feet of 8 gauge stranded copper wire through my attic, total resistance 1 ohm lol. I'm getting about 28 to 30VDC out my 24VDC panels under load which is pretty good. With charge controllers you always want to buy the biggest and baddest one you can afford and MPPT is an absolute must have. Let me know if you need anything at all, check out my videos!

[capnrob97]

Looks good! I just got this controller today. Looking forward to trying it out.

[Schweizer135]

@wiboater4 No, the SF GTI 500 is another unit sold by the ebay seller using-gods-free-energy but it looks like there is none listed currently. Did you see my note on wire size? What are your thoughts?

[Schweizer135]

@wiboater4 Perhaps your wire gauge it too light for 30A over the distance - loses in the line is a very common problem. For a 30A/12V array you need 3 gauge for 30 feet, 2 gauge for 40 feet, and 1 gauge for 50 feet. This is to keep the line lose to under the NEC required 3%.

[wiboater4]

I tested the panels and got 20 volts from the small one and 20 volts each from the 2 doubles in parallel, didn't check each seperatly on large ones. With just the small 36 cell panel hooked up I got 2.5 amps out of it, but not the best sun during test. at that I should be getting 12.5 amps total from all the panels but I'm not..